When Money is not Enough: Reggae, Dancehall, and Policy in Jamaica

Abstract

This study highlights another disjuncture in the internationalization of the creative industries policy discourse, a postcolonial disjuncture. Despite reggae’s global popularity and the Jamaican government’s adoption of creative industries discourse, policies supporting the music industry remain lacking. This article demonstrates that economic value alone is not always enough to make a creative sector worthy of policy support, even after adoption of creative industries discourse. The sociocultural history and position of the creative sector are equally important. This article, by highlighting the social and cultural embeddedness of creative sectors, questions the social inclusion benefit assumed of creative industries-led development.